GROW
YOUR BUSINESS LIKE A WINNING QUARTERBACK

Focus, Interception and Recognizing When the Play is Over Can be Keys to
Growing One's Business During Tough Times

by Mimi Donaldson

IMMEDIATE NEED: What do we do for money right now?

Here are three tips we can learn from. They're from the Super Bowl game held
on February 1, 2009, and they'll help us manage in these troubled times. (I'm a
"football girl," so I was glued to the game!):

#1: FOCUS

Ben Roethlisberger, the winning quarterback, extended many plays with
tremendous focus and presence of mind. Larry Fitzgerald, a brilliant wide
receiver, turned the game around with a long touchdown run because he looked for
an opening and never looked back.

Lesson - We need to focus on the value of our product and service, stay calm
in the face of doubters, and look for an opening for success - and never look
back!

#2: INTERCEPTION

At the end of the first half, James Harrison intercepted the ball and
returned it 100 yards (the length of the field) for a touchdown with the longest
run in Super Bowl history. The interception changed the context of the game and
shifted the momentum.

Lesson - This is not in the traditional job description of a linebacker (he
needed oxygen afterwards). In our businesses, we need to do something different
now: attend a meeting you've never attended; look for an opportunity in a
non-traditional place.

#3: WHEN THE WHISTLE BLOWS, THE PLAY IS OVER!

Santonio Holmes caught the winning touchdown. But he had dropped a sure
touchdown pass just moments before. He begged his quarterback for one more
chance, telling him, "Please let me get this game for you." Each man respected
the finality of the play before. They did not allow it to affect the next play.

Lesson - We need to shake off our past mistakes and alarming economic
forecast and recognize that each moment is a new moment of now.